D R E A M I N G
by MeowKitty1912
Summary: Morningpaw always knew her destiny was to be a medicine cat, ever since she was a kit; She never cared for fighting. Soon after becoming a full medicine cat, though, she starts to have strange dreams – barren lands littered with dead bodies, yowls of pain. Is StarClan trying to tell her something? (Rated T for Warriors! Was called 'Dreamland' before.
1. Allegiances

** A/N: Note this was called Dreamland before. Different name, same story! Named after the song Dreaming by Jasmine Thompson - go check it out!**

**Morningpaw always knew her destiny was to be a medicine cat, ever since she was a kit. She never cared for fighting, and would much rather help a queen have kits than be one. Soon after becoming a full medicine cat, though, she starts to have strange dreams – barren lands littered with dead bodies, cats screaming for someone to put them out of their misery. Is StarClan trying to tell her something?**

_BeechClan:_

_Leader:_ Dawnstar – dark gray she-cat with yellow eyes

_Deputy:_ Nettleclaw – brown tabby tom

_Medicine Cat:_ Mossheart – tortoiseshell she-cat

_Apprentice:_ Morningpaw

_Warriors:_

Sunblaze – ginger tabby tom

Blackshade – black tom with yellow eyes

_Apprentice:_ Ravenpaw

Hollystorm – dark ginger she-cat

_Apprentice: _Pinepaw

Willowfrost – white she-cat

Nightfur – black tom with white paws

Ashwhisker – gray tabby tom

_Apprentice:_ Petalpaw

Swiftfur – black and white tom

_Apprentices:_

Petalpaw – cream-colored she-cat with blue eyes

Ravenpaw – gray tom

Morningpaw – white she-cat with gray paws and blue eyes

Pinepaw – dark brown tabby she-cat with almost voilet eyes

_Queens:_

Specklefrost – tortoiseshell and white she-cat with two kits, Goldenkit (golden she-kit), and Shadekit (black tom)

Honeyfeather – cream-colored she-kit expecting kits

_Elders:_

Spidertail – black tom with a long tail

Berryfoot – long-haired white tom


	2. Dreams

**Hi! I'm MeowKitty1912, obviously. I just wanted to say thank you for reading, and I hope you like it! I'll try to update about twice a week, but I'm really busy, so we'll see.**

If Morningpaw's destiny wasn't to be a medicine cat, then she might as well have been a kittypet. She was a natural at recognizing herbs and treating cats, and was even better at comforting kitting queens. The elders loved how she would willingly check them for ticks and listen to their stories, even though she didn't need to.

It was Newleaf, and Morningpaw was gathering fresh catmint, as their winter supply was nearly gone, though not quite as many cats had gotten greencough. The morning was warm, and the shadows dancing on the ground felt cool. Tall trees surrounded Morningpaw and Mossheart, her mentor.

"Last night I had a really good dream," Morningpaw pawed the catmint she had collected, distracted by the memory. A light wind blew through her white fur.

"Hm. Do you think we have enough catmint?" Mossheart pushed all of the green herb into one pile.

"Yeah. Anyway, in the dream we were at the Moonstream with Ravenpaw. Weird, right?" Morningpaw looked eagerly at her mentor, blue eyes shining.

It took a moment for Mossheart to answer, as she was dividing the catmint into two piles. "I guess. Go on."

"So, Ravenpaw was talking about being deputy! It sounded like, in the dream, Dawnstar had died. Isn't that sad?" As she waited for Mossheart to answer, Morningpaw picked up one pile of the catmint. Mossheart took the other.

"Very." Mossheart's voice was muffled by the catmint.

They started to walk, in silence at first. It seemed that both of them were deep in thought about Morningpaw's dream. The sunlight that fell through the branches was changing direction; it would soon be sunhigh. Close by they heard a hunting patrol.

"After that, Mossheart, and this is the worst part, you fell into the Moonstream! The current was really strong, I could tell, and you vanished." Morningpaw looked at the ground, as if ashamed of what she was saying.

"I thought you said it was a good dream? Or are you sick of me bossing you around?" Mossheart purred.

"No! But... after that, Ravenpaw went away, and... and some kits appeared, and they were crawling all over me – and the scene changed! I was in the nursery! And a different cat was the medicine cat, and he was giving me a herb – borage, I think." Morningpaw's voice had a strange tone to it, as if she half wished that the dream was real.

Mossheart paused, but only for a second. "Continue,"

"Then I woke up. But what do you think it means, Mossheart?"

"I think it means you have very vivid dreams, Morningpaw." Mossheart meowed.

As they were nearing the camp, voices, mingled together so no single one could be distinguished, could be heard. It all came from a hole in the ground. Mossheart paused at it, and put down her catmint.

"Hello? Morningpaw and I are coming down!" She yowled down the hole.

No answer came from the darkness. Mossheart picked up her catmint and moved aside for Morningpaw to go first. She unsheathed her claws and peirced them into the dirt. Slowly and carefully she made her way down the hole, Mossheart after her. A second later they were in camp.

The main part of camp had been dug moons and moons earlier, so far back no cat could remember. It was very big; at one side there was a pool of water and the fresh-kill pile, and on the other side were more holes dug in the wall: dens. Morningpaw followed her mentor to the one farthest from the entrance hole, envying the darker-colored cats as she passed them – her white-and-gray pelt was always getting dirty. Mossheart and Morningpaw entered the medicine cat den.

The walls were crumbling slightly, being dried dirt, but luckily it was easily fixed by rubbing wet moss over it. The moss in question was in one corner, Morningpaw's den next to it, and Mossheart's den next to that. Beside the hole that she had just come through, Morningpaw put her catmint down in a nearly-empty hole dug in the ground. She then stood back to let Mossheart do the same.

"Morningpaw, will you take some mousebile and bring it to Pinepaw?" Mossheart asked her apprentice.

Morningpaw nodded, and pushed away her thoughts to do her apprentice duties.


	3. Fallen

**A/N: Morningpaw gets scared a lot... but does what she needs to anyway. I don't think a lot of people do that, human or cat.**

"Morningpaw!" The voice came from behind her, carried by the wind.

Morningpaw turned to see her sisters, Pinepaw and Petalpaw, running towards her. As they came closer, she was able to see the differences in eye color – Pinepaw's eyes were the tiniest bit violet. Right as they reached her, they both stopped, or tried to, as clumsy Petalpaw slid on the damp ground towards Morningpaw, who leapt out of the way just in time.

"What do you need?" Morningpaw purred.

Petalpaw, who had blue eyes like Morningpaw and cream-colored fur, shook herself, giggling. "Pinepaw and I miss you." She looked at Morningpaw with wide eyes, purposely making herself look sad.

"We were wondering if you would come with us to climb trees!" Pinepaw looked very different than her sisters, being a brown tabby.

Morningpaw looked at her sisters, with their eager looks. Her gaze moved to the tall beech trees surrounding them, going on forever, that their Clan was named for. Finally, she rested on pile of herbs Petalpaw had slid into, now being blown away by the wind.

"I'm sorry, but I really -" Morningpaw started.

"Please!" Petalpaw's voice had both sadness and a hint of annoyance that her sister wouldn't agree. "We're littermates, aren't we?"

Morningpaw sighed. "Fine, then. But not for long."

Pinepaw and Petalpaw exchanged looks of glee, then started to push Morningpaw towards the East; the direction of the biggest tree in the forest. Morningpaw broke away and padded alone, until her sisters, once again, started to nudge her until she was running.

"Isn't this fun?" Morningpaw barely heard Petalpaw squeal through the wind rushing in her ears.

"Yeah!" Pinepaw yelled back.

"I guess..." Morningpaw meowed.

They gradually slowed down as the huge tree in the distance grew larger. BeechClan scent markers bordered a few feet from the tree. Morningpaw slowed down, but her two littermates rushed ahead.

"Guys!" Morningpaw said, just inside the border. They both stopped and turned to face her. "Are we supposed to be here?"

"Sure..." Pinepaw mewed, not sounding sure at all. She seemed to be looking over Morningpaw, as if to make sure nobody had followed them.

"I assume, I mean, Ravenpaw showed us this place. We've been coming here for a while." Petalpaw answered.

"But isn't he a bit... strange?" Morningpaw looked at her paws. The truth was that she felt weird everytime she thought about him, and was trying to rid her memory of him.

"Nah. Come on!" Petalpaw turned to the tree and padded up to it. She put her front paws on it and pushed herself up to the first branch. Pinepaw followed, hesitantly.

After a minute, thinking, Morningpaw walked over, if only to make sure they didn't hurt themselves. Soon after, though, she realized that it looked fun, and leapt to the first branch. Morningpaw looked up; her sisters were already very high, but she ought to be able to catch up quickly.

Branch after branch, jump after jump, Morningpaw climbed. Every so often she heard her sisters say something.

"Race you to that branch!"

"Should we go back soon?"

"Wow, this view is amazing!"

The last one made Morningpaw curious. She looked around to find Pinepaw, who had said it, and with a jolt realized that she was only a few branches away. Morningpaw could probably reach it in one jump. She crouched, preparing –

"Look out!" Morningpaw leapt.

"Huh? No -" Pinepaw yowled, starled.

Too late, Morningpaw realized how thin the branch was. She just had time to scoot to the thickest part before it broke and fell – Pinepaw falling with it. Her yowl broke the dawning night, and Morningpaw quickly climbed down the tree. After all, she was a medicine cat, she should be able to treat Pinepaw, if she wasn't –

Leafs scattered as Morningpaw's feet hit the ground at last. She looked up, and saw Petalpaw scurring down as well. She then turned her attention to Pinepaw, who was several feet away. Her fur had bits of twigs and leaves, and her flank was rapidly rising and falling.

As Morningpaw drew nearer, her heart slowed back to normal. It looked as if Pinepaw would be fine; there was a scrape on her side but that was all. But then, why wasn't Pinepaw getting up, and why was her breathing so shallow? Morningpaw nudged Pinepaw. She didn't answer, so Morningpaw assumed she had blacked out. She turned Pinepaw over.

Right away Morningpaw saw what was wrong – her sister's leg was bent at a very odd angle, and was bloody as well. Horror flooded Morningpaw. She took a second to breath, trying to calm herself.

"What's hap -" Petalpaw, having climbed down, broke off at the sight of Pinepaw.

"Pinepaw fell." Morningpaw said quietly.

A few moments later Morningpaw realized that Pinepaw's breathing was getting even more irregular. She might die if Morningpaw didn't do anything. Morningpaw didn't know exactly what to do, but she knew enough to get Pinepaw safely to Mossheart.

"Petalpaw, I need you to find me a long stick," Morningpaw told her sister.

Petalpaw nodded, staring at Pinepaw for a second longer before running off into the trees. Morningpaw looked around her, hoping to see a spider, sitting in a nice spiderweb. Then she saw it – sitting in a bush, was the spider, and below it what she needed.

Morningpaw rushed over to it. It looked and felt strange, and a shiver ran down her back, but Morningpaw pushed the spider away with her paw. She bent down and grabbed a twig in her teeth. When she straightened up, Morningpaw pushed the stick into the spiderweb. When she pulled it away, a nice clump of sticky white web was still stuck to it. Morningpaw rushed back to Pinepaw, where Petalpaw was standing with a big stick at her paws.

"Thanks." Morningpaw told her sister. Then she set to work.

She wasn't sure how she did it, but somehow Morningpaw bound the stick to Pinepaw's leg, with cobwebs covering the bloody wound. Her heart pounded, and she was terrified that Pinepaw would stop breathing.

"What now?" Asked Petalpaw as Morningpaw stepped back.

"I'm going to run back to camp; I think I'm faster than you. Petalpaw, you need to bring Pinepaw back to camp as quickly as possible – but don't hurt her. Can you do that?" Morningpaw told Petalpaw.

"Yes." Petalpaw nodded.

"Okay."


	4. Change

** If you haven't noticed, I am extremely horrible at coming up with chapter titles. Usually I just go by, "chapter one, chapter two" but nooo, I decided to try something new. Also, thank you to Skylar Can Sing for being the first to review.**

Morningpaw stared at the dirt wall. Behind her she could hear Pinepaw's moaning and Mossheart murmering to her. Outside of the medicine den Petalpaw was pacing, trying to walk off her fear.

"Mossheart?" Morningpaw meowed.

"What?" Mossheart responded.

"Will Pinepaw be okay?"

"Of course."

"Good." Morningpaw closed her eyes, releived.

Several hours before, Morningpaw had run faster than ever, needing to reach camp as soon as possible. As soon as she had informed Mossheart, Morningpaw had raced back to Petalpaw, who had somehow lifted the smaller Pinepaw onto her back. Together they took their sister to the medicine cat den.

Not being able to stand sitting for much longer, Morningpaw stood up and padded out of the den, being careful not to look at Pinepaw's bloody leg. Outside, many cats seemed to be waiting for news. They stood close together a little ways off, near the fresh-kill pile. Some cats were whispering to their clanmates. Petalpaw, seeing Morningpaw out of the den, stopped pacing.

"How is she? This is all my fault!" Petalpaw asked.

"Both of you wanted to go, so no, it wasn't. Even so, Mossheart says that Pinepaw will be okay." Morningpaw reasoned. She didn't let on that it was truly her fault, having jumped on the branch.

The group of cats seemed to of heard, as they broke away, some going to their den, some grabbing fresh-kill. Only one cat remained. Ravenpaw. He padded over to them slowly, trying to figure out what to say, maybe.

"Hey," Ravenpaw greeted them.

"Hi." Morningpaw mewed.

"So..." Ravenpaw lowered his voice and leaned closer to the she-cats. "Did you go to the tree?"

"Yeah, we did." Petalpaw whispered. She glanced at the other cats in camp. They didn't seem to have heard.

"She fell, then?" Ravenpaw asked.

"How else would she have hurt herself?" Petalpaw meowed.

"I dunno. Once I smelled fox." Ravenpaw shrugged.

"Wait a minute, you smelled _fox_? And you still go there?" Morningpaw gasped.

Ravenpaw shrugged again. "Yeah."

"That isn't safe, though! It's out of BeechClan territory, as well!"

"Geez, Morningpaw! Stop being such a fun-hater!" Petalpaw hissed. She turned and padded to the apprentices' den, Morningpaw staring after her.

"What's wrong with her? She was fine earlier." Morningpaw wondered out loud, turning to face Ravenpaw.

"You're the medicine cat." Ravenpaw said. "And you were being pretty obnoxious."

"How was I being obnoxious? I was concerned for your safety!" Morningpaw raised her voice. Heads turned.

"I dunno." Ravenpaw turned and padded to the fresh-kill pile without another word.

Morningpaw shook her head, trying to clear her mind. She couldn't quite grasp what Petalpaw had done. She had always been very nice, yet never lied as far as Morningpaw knew; Petalpaw would speak her mind but never insulted anyone.

But then again, it had been several moons since they had hung out together. Maybe she had changed since then. Maybe Morningpaw could ask Pinepaw about it when she had woken. For now, though, all she could do was wait.


	5. Illness

"Wanna play moss-ball?" Pinepaw asked Moonpaw.

Pinepaw was sitting in her temporary nest in the medicine cat den. Her leg, they discovered after removing dried blood and twigs, was hurt no more that a shallow gash. The next day she would go back to normal apprentice duties, but for now she was confined to her next for most of the day. Morningpaw was near the entrance of the den, sorting the herbs her mentor had brought back while Mossheart was giving herbs to Goldenkit, who had a slight cold.

"No." Morningpaw told her sternly, not taking her eyes off of the ground.

"Why not?" Pinepaw whined.

"I'm busy."

"Pleeeaaase?"

"Oh, fine." Morningpaw sighed. She pushed away the herbs and padded over to her sister, whose eyes were playfully gleaming.

"Can I go first?" Pinepaw asked.

"Sure," Morningpaw grabbed a wad of moss and gave it to Pinepaw.

A second later the moss flew into the air, and Morningpaw leapt and batted it with her paw. It flew back to Pinepaw, who hit it again. Back and forth it went, never stopping. The only reason they ceased was because Mossheart, looking weary, came in.

"Morningpaw! Pinepaw! What are you doing?" She demanded. Morningpaw knew that Mossheart didn't like slackers.

"Playing moss-ball..." Morningpaw trailed away. Until now their many games of moss-ball had been in secret.

"It's really boring, see, just sitting here." Pinepaw chirped in.

Mossheart thought for a moment. "I understand, I just don't want you to injure your leg more." She said in a much softer tone that before.

"But the wound already closed," Morningpaw meowed, answering for Pinepaw.

"That doesn't mean it's completely healed." Mossheart told her apprentice. Morningpaw made a mental note to remember this for later.

"We're sorry -" Morningpaw started.

"What about battle practice?" Pinepaw looked very upset. "If we get attacked what will happen? I don't want to be a burden to the clan."

"All you need to do is take it easy until it's healed." Mossheart smiled at the brown she-cat. "Now, Morningpaw, return to sorting herbs."

Morningpaw obeyed, and was soon blocking out everything else in order to be finished quickly. Several minutes later she looked up to see Mossheart telling Pinepaw a story. She couldn't help but smile.

"And thus Lilyfrost was banished from BeechClan, and we've never heard from her since." Mossheart finished. Pinepaw was staring at her paws, which were stretched out in front of her.

"Mossheart," Morningpaw beckoned to her mentor with her tail, suddenly remembering how tired she had been when she had come in the den.

The two she-cats padded outside the den so Pinepaw couldn't hear, though Morningpaw wasn't sure if it would matter.

"Is anything wrong with Goldenkit?" Morningpaw asked her mentor.

"Yes," Mossheart sighed, tail drooping. "I think she has whitecough."

"That's horrible!" Morningpaw gasped. Whitecough in such a young kit could be dangerous.

"Let's just hope it doesn't spread," With that Mossheart walked back into the medicine cat den.

Morningpaw stared after her, wondering how Mossheart could be so... Morningpaw couldn't think of the right word. All she could imagine was a poor kit, dead, while the rest of the clan stood without illness.

To her, a kit was much more important.


	6. Rogues

Sunlight filtered through the forest, flickering as clouds glided over the sun. Shadows fell across the floor of leaves. Morningpaw barely had time to notice, though, as Goldenkit ran ahead, trying to get away.

Usually kits weren't allowed out of camp, but as Goldenkit was slowly developing whitecough, they made an exception. Since the she-kit was young and tiny, whitecough would soon turn into greencough, and for the same reasons it was likely she would die. Goldenkit's brother had whined when they wouldn't let him go. Morningpaw had been wishing they could take the energetic tom, but now she was glad they had left him.

"Goldenkit!" Morningpaw called.

Goldenkit skidded to a stop and turned to face Morningpaw.

"You're too slow," Goldenkit moaned.

"And you're too fast!" Morningpaw purred. "Aren't you tired?"

"Never!" Goldenkit giggled, but it turned into a coughing fit.

"She seems sick," a voice meowed from behind Morningpaw, who was looking at the kit with pity.

The apprentice turned, and then wished she hadn't. Standing there was a large brown tom with yellow eyes. He had a very long tail, and looked angry, though his voice had been kind. Next to him was a scared tortoiseshell she-cat, shivering.

"A - and you are?" Morningpaw stuttered. She curled her tail around Goldenkit to protect her just in case this strange tom wanted to hurt them.

"Flash," Flash's voice was deep. "And this is Wing." He motioned to the tortoiseshell with his tail. "We need to speak to your leader."

He said it in a strange way, as if he wasn't sure what he was doing. Flash looked smart, though, so Morningpaw agreed.

"Okay."

Morningpaw led the rogues, making sure Goldenkit was right beside her. There was no knowing if they could trust these cats; at any moment they could kill Morningpaw and Goldenkit.

"Stay here. I'll get BeechClan's leader." Morningpaw said when they reached the hole in the ground. She didn't feel right leading Flash right into camp.

As soon as they were in camp Morningpaw shooed Goldenkit to the nursery. She then padded to the leader's den. Morningpaw poked her head in and saw Dawnstar sitting with her eyes closed.

"Dawnstar?" Morningpaw mewed softly, in case her leader was sleeping.

She wasn't, though, and she lifted her head and opened her eyes.

"Yes, Morningpaw?"

"I'm not sure if I did the right thing..." Morningpaw sighed. "There are some rogues waiting to see you."

"Okay. Get Hollystorm and Nettleclaw." Dawnstar stood and stretched. Morningpaw was glad she had taken the news so well.

The white she-cat padded out of the den and went straight to the warriors' den. Inside, though, Hollystorm was nowhere to be found.

"Who are you looking for?" A ginger she-cat stood beside Morningpaw.

"You!" Morningpaw meowed, relieved. "Dawnstar wanted me to get you and Nettleclaw. Any idea where he is?"

"He's leading a patrol right now." Hollystorm replied. "He won't be back do for a while. Let's go find Dawnstar."

For the first time that day someone else was leading Morningpaw. They climbed out of camp to see Dawnstar already talking calmly with the rogues.

"I see," Dawnstar told Flash. "Please leave our territory."

Without a word the two rogues left.

•••

"All cats gather!" Dawnstar stood on the Highstone. Her gray fur shone, reflecting the light that came from the hole she stood under. "We have been threatened."

Morningpaw stood with her littermates in the crowd. She had no idea what Dawnstar was talking about. After the rogues had left, Morningpaw had been sent to sort herbs before she could hear what had happened.

"Rogues have warned us that they will fight for our territory unless we give it to them willingly. Obviously, we shall battle." Dawnstar's words seemed to give strength to her clan. They raised their heads higher as if the battle was going to happen right away.

"We need more warriors," she continued. "Petalpaw, Pinepaw."

Morningpaw gasped. Pinepaw couldn't become a warrior yet! Not only had their training not been finished, but her wound wasn't fully healed. It could be dangerous if it reopened. But the two sisters joined Dawnstar on the Highstone.

"I, Dawnstar, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand your noble code and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn.

"Pinepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your clan even at the cost of your life?" Dawnstar gazed at the brown tabby she-cat.

"I do." Pinepaw gasped, as if she couldn't hold the words in.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Pinepaw, from now on you will be known as Pinefeather. StarClan honors your courage and we welcome you as a full warrior of BeechClan." Dawnstar finished. She did the same to the newly named Petalstorm.

"Petalstorm! Pinefeather!" Morningpaw cheered along with her clanmates. Her sisters looked so proud up there on the Highstone, but she couldn't help feeling a little worried.

The clan went their separate ways, many to their dens since it was after sunset. Morningpaw padded up to her sisters, who had just jumped down from the Highstone.

"Congratulations." Morningpaw couldn't help but say it rather stiffly.

"What's wrong?" Pinefeather asked. Petalstorm left her two littermates to start her vigil; she and Morningpaw hadn't been getting along.

"Just... Be careful with your leg." Morningpaw muttered to her sister. She didn't want to seem too distant, but she couldn't help it.

"Don't worry. I will." Pinefeather purred before following Petalstorm.

For a few minutes Morningpaw started to believe that everything would truly be okay. That was, until the call came from above.

"Attack!"

**A/N: Yep, one of those overused cliffhangers that all stories have... I just had to do it! Anyhow, I just want to say this now: the 20th reviewer will get to have not just one character in the story, but three! They'll show up around chapter nine or so.**


	7. Battle

As soon as the words were spoken, shadows slipped into camp. Several cats were tussling on the ground, and shreiks sounded everywhere. Morningpaw couldn't see a thing, but somehow she made it to the medicine cat den.

Inside, it was much calmer. Mossheart was taking out herbs that she might need from the holes in the ground. Her fur was fluffed up and her eyes were bigger than normal, but other than that she seemed fine – Morningpaw was surprised.

"What do we do?" Morningpaw asked her mentor.

"Nothing." Mossheart replied.

"But – but why?" Morningpaw was shocked.

"If you wanted to fight, you shouldn't have been a medicine cat," Mossheart snapped. Morningpaw assumed she must be worried, so she dropped the subject.

The apprentice started to pace the den. Outside she could see cats defending the den; herbs were very important. Yowls of pain filled the air.

Suddenly three cats burst through the entrance; two BeechClan and one rogue. One of them was Pinefeather, who bore several scratches on her face. She swiped at the rogue, and Morningpaw reognized Wing.

"Morningpaw, Mossheart! Get back!" The other clan cat, Sunblaze, told them.

They backed all the way to the back of the den. Morningpaw could feel Mossheart shaking.

Pinefeather and Sunblaze kept swiping Wing until she ran out of the den. Sunblaze went after her, but Pinefeather paused.

"Are you okay?" Pinefeather padded up to the medicine cats.

"Pinefeather," Morningpaw's eyes grew wide as she realized what had happened. "Your leg!"

Pinefeather bent down to look at it, but her leg gave out and she fell down. The wound had reopened, and was even bigger than before. Mossheart gasped and went to grab some herbs.

"What happened?" Morningpaw licked the dry blood around her sister's leg.

"I'm not sure. I think that -" Pinefeather broke off in a moan. Mossheart was back and applying poultice to the leg.

Morningpaw strained her ears and noticed that it was silent. She padded out of the den and into the camp. Many cats were standing and licking blood off of themselves before going to the medicine cat den, but a few were on the ground, supposedly dead, including –

"Ravenpaw!" Morningpaw gasped. She ran over to the gray tom. His injuries weren't bad at all, yet here he was. "Ravenpaw?" She whispered softly. She leaned closer.

"Gotcha!" Ravenpaw stood up suddenly, scaring Morningpaw. She stood for a moment, gasping for breath.

"That wasn't funny!" She hissed.

"Sure it was, you're still a fun-hater." Ravenpaw started to clean his fur.

"Right after a battle? I might have laughed if it had been a few days ago." Morningpaw told the tom.

"Fun-hater," Ravenpaw muttered under his breath.

Morningpaw stomped off to the medicine cat den. Many cats were standing outside, waiting to be treated. Morningpaw ran inside to get herbs and quickly out, and started to apply cobwebs and chervil to wounds.

**A/N: Sorry that this chapter is so short... would you rather have long chapters or frequent chapters? 17 more reviews to go! Hit that button!**


	8. Death

Morningpaw sat at the base of a tree. Once again she wasn't able to appreciate the beauty of the forest, but this time it was because of Pinefeather – Mossheart had confided that she might die. _At least she's a warrior, _Morningpaw thought, _even if it was only for a day. _

The air was warm; it would soon be greenleaf. If there was a good time for a battle, this would be it. BeechClan warriors were strong and full of prey, like the forest around them. Prey in the forest also meant that fewer warriors on short hunting patrols managed to bring back lots of prey. In fact, Morningpaw could hear a mouse right near her.

The white she-cat stood and padded deeper into the forest. She felt a little bad leaving Mossheart with the cats that were still healing, though there were few, but Morningpaw had needed some time alone. Pinefeather had developed a bad cold and was barely awake. Morningpaw was confused as how it had happened in just a few days. Pinefeather was young and strong; wasn't that enough to save her?

Suddenly Morningpaw stopped. The rustling noise she had thought was a mouse was closer, and the creature making it was certainly bigger than a mouse. Probably cat-sized.

"Who's there?" Morningpaw spoke up. If it was a fox, though, it wouldn't be able to answer, she realized.

A pair of yellow eyes appeared in the shadows. They moved closer, and soon a dark tortoiseshell she-cat was standing in front of Morningpaw, who was frozen.

"Oh. You're not him." The tortoiseshell said. She lingered for a second before turning and padding away into the beech trees.

"What?" Morningpaw whispered to herself. She wasn't sure what had happened – was it just her imagination? Should she tell Dawnstar? _No, _she decided. If there really was a rogue, then someone else would smell it.

Soon Morningpaw sat in the shade of a tree. The sun was hotter than usual, and Morningpaw started to feel drowsy. She slowly drifted off to sleep...

…

"Morningpaw, wake up!" Mossheart hissed in her apprentice's ear.

"But I don't want..." Morningpaw moaned, her eyes still closed. Then she realized: Mossheart wouldn't come and get her normally. Something must've happened. Morningpaw opened her eyes and looked at Mossheart.

Mossheart's face was clouded in grief. Her eyes seemed blank, and Morningpaw choked back a yowl of sadness.

"Is Pinefeather - ?" Morningpaw whispered to her mentor. Mossheart nodded sadly. The two stood in silence for a minute.

"Do you want to be alone?" Mossheart asked.

"Yes," Morningpaw sniffed. She watched as Mossheart padded away.

**A/N: Poor Pinefeather... but I knew she would die, since I'm the writer. Not that it makes it any better. Anyhow, still 17 more reviews, so PLEASE hit that button! Also, I'm gonna start doing that thing where you wait for at least one review before updating again.**


	9. Anger

The walk back to camp seemed longer than usual. The sounds of the forest calmed Morningpaw, but still she felt frightened; it had dawned on her that she could be the next to die. Besides that, she had expected Pinefeather to live.

She was glad that no patrols bothered her, though she could scent a few nearby. Morningpaw was dreading even walking into camp, she realized as she saw the entrance hole coming nearer. The apprentice stood at the edge, and opened her mouth softly. No words came out. _It doesn't matter if they know I'm coming, _she decided.

Morningpaw slid down into camp. Most of BeechClan was busy as normal, but Petalstorm was lingering near the medicine cat den, where Mossheart would be preparing Pinefeather's body. Morningpaw went numb as she realized she would have to help.

Looking for an excuse to get away once again, Morningpaw spotted Ravenpaw eating a squirrel. He was almost finished, so Morningpaw padded over to him.

"Hi." Morningpaw said to the gray tom.

"Hey," Ravenpaw avoided Morningpaw's gaze as he took a bite of his prey. "Er... want a bit?" He offered, realizing that she was still there.

"No thanks. Will you take a walk with me?" Morningpaw asked.

"Didn't you just come back?" Ravenpaw meowed.

"Yes, but..." Morningpaw glanced at the medicine cat den.

Ravenpaw must have noticed as he said, "Oh, I see... sure, then. Let's go." He stood up.

"Thanks," Morningpaw whispered as the two apprentices came out into the forest.

"No problem. I'm... sorry, I guess." Ravenpaw muttered.

"It's okay... well, it isn't," Morningpaw added. "but, you know. There's nothing I can do."

The two stopped at a stream near the edge of BeechClan territory. The blue water rushed by swiftly, beautiful in it's own way.

"Is there anything I can do? I mean, something only medicine cats know about..." Ravenpaw said suddenly.

It took a moment for Morningpaw to answer. "No, there isn't."

"You're sure?"

"Actually..." Morningpaw realized that Ravenpaw could do something.

"What is it? Is there a ritual? Could we bring Pinefeather back to life?" Ravenpaw's eyes lit up with exitement.

"No," Morningpaw shook her head. "Nothing like that."

"Then what?" Ravenpaw sighed.

"You can apoligize." Morningpaw stared at the stream.

"What did I do?" Ravenpaw souned surprised.

"You showed them the tree," Morningpaw mewed quietly.

"Showed who?"

"Petalstorm and Pinefeather."

"I told them not to climb too high," Ravenpaw told Morningpaw.

"Apoligize!" Morningpaw demanded. She didn't know why, but suddenly she was angry.

"No!" Ravenpaw unsheathed his claws.

"You can't attack me." Morningpaw snarled, hoping her fear didn't appear in her voice. Ravenpaw wouldn't really claw her, would he?

"Just... leave me alone!" Ravenpaw hissed before turning and padding away.

_Great, _Morningpaw thought to herself. Now both Petalstorm and Ravenpaw were mad at her, along with Pinefeather being dead. What else could go wrong?

**A/N: Aw, at first it was so sweet but now Ravenpaw is mad... that can't be good! 16 more reviews; I'm gonna wait for two more before updating.**


	10. Tragic

A rush of cold air woke Morningpaw with a start. She snuggled deeper into her soft next, wishing it would go away. She didn't want to wake. Pinefeather's burial had been painful; Morningpaw had always believed that her sister would be there. Now she was gone, up in StarClan with stars in her pelt.

The she-cat shook herself, attempting to clear her head. Even now sadness clouded her mind. _Pinefeather... I miss you. _Morningpaw thought in her head, somehow hoping that it would reach the brown warrior. Her thoughts suddenly disappeared.

There was something different. Something Morningpaw hadn't noticed a second ago, trying to fight her thoughts away. Her nest wasn't quite as soft as before. Ever since she was a kit, Morningpaw had been very picky about bedding; she had spent many restless nights shifting about in her nest, wishing it were more comfortable.

Suddenly, a noise came. It was haunting; eerie. Morningpaw supposed it must be the wind, but there was something else about it... it seemed so familiar, yet... She realized what it was: voices. So many, so softly.

Moringpaw opened her eyes. For a second she thought she had gone blind; all she could see was mist. But through the fog she could just barely see a figure... no, two... wait, three? Many figures. They seemed to be fighting, blood splattered.

Yowls filled the air. Not just yowls of pain, but yowls of sorrow; Morningpaw wanted to die. It tore at her heart, willing her to move, to do something.

And then it stopped. Instead of at a battle scene, Morningpaw was in the medicine cat den, in her usual soft nest, with no fog. The only sound was Mossheart's breathing, and blood? No way was there any in the den.

But still Morningpaw sighed, wondering what it meant. Had StarClan sent a prophecy? If so, why in such a tragic way? She had always imagined waking up in StarClan and being spoken to, or at least having the prophecy plainly spoken to her.

Would Mossheart even believe her? Maybe not. Morningpaw still remembered when she shared her first dream with her mentor. Still, she must...

After all, it might mean something important.

**A/N: I know I said I would write longer chapters, but I didn't know how to make this longer. Thanks to Amberpool and Skylar Can Sing for reviewing! Three more 'til the next chapter!**


	11. Greencough

"Morningpaw?" A tiny voice whispered.

Morningpaw opened her eyes to see Goldenkit. The kit looked better than usual, but her eyes were the tiniest bit cloudy.

"Yes?" Morningpaw whispered back; the morning light was just creeping in.

"I had a scary dream." Goldenkit said, curling up beside Morningpaw.

"Would you like to tell me about it?" Morningpaw asked, remembering what her mother had always done for her.

"Yeah. I had a dream that I was sick, and I... I died." Goldenkit buried her face in the apprentice's fur.

Morningpaw paused. She hadn't ever heard of a dream like that before. "Was that all? Do you remember how you felt?"

"I felt -" Goldenkit broke off, coughing. "I felt like this!"

Morningpaw quickly got up and padded out of the den. It seemed like Goldenkit might finally have greencough.

"Ravenpaw!" Morningpaw called to the gray tom, the first cat she saw.

"What?" Ravenpaw asked, an edge to his voice.

"Do you know where Mossheart is?" Morningpaw asked.

"No." Ravenpaw padded off.

_Great_, Morningpaw thought. Mossheart would know what to do... except, Morningpaw realized, she herself knew! All she needed was catmint, which luckily they had plenty of.

Morningpaw quickly stepped inside the den and saw Goldenkit laying on her nest, supposedly asleep. Just to make sure, Morningpaw raced over and saw that the kit was breathing. The white she-cat grabbed some catmint.

"Goldenkit," Morningpaw nudged the kit with her paw.

She didn't answer, but opened her eyes. Morningpaw pushed tha catmint forward.

"You need to eat this, okay? It'll make you feel better." Morningpaw said.

Goldenkit didn't move, though. Her flank, which had been moving up and down before, was still. Morningpaw felt numb. How had Goldenkit died so quickly?

She heard pawsteps, but didn't raise her head.

"Is she dead?" Mossheart brushed against the apprentice. Morningpaw nodded. "I'm sorry."

"Wait, what happened?" Ravenpaw made his presence known.

"Goldenkit is dead," Mossheart answered solemnly.

"Oh..." Ravenpaw whispered.

For a few minutes all was silent. Mossheart stood up suddenly.

"Follow me," Mossheart said to Morningpaw.

"Why?" Morningpaw asked, still staring at the tiny body.

"It's time for you to get your full name," Mossheart replied "Ravenpaw, tell the Clan about Goldenkit."

"Sure," Ravenpaw raced out of the den.

Morningpaw looked at Mossheart, who was looking at Goldenkit.

"Is anything wrong?" Morningpaw said.

"No," Mossheart replied quickly. "of course not."

**A/N: So, I only got two reviews. That's okay, though... that's also what I'm expecting for this chapter. I wish that Goldenkit had lived... buuut I like making characters die.**


	12. Names

"We're almost there," Mossheart said.

Morningpaw was glad that Mossheart had known to say that. If she hadn't been feeling so beat, Morningpaw would have asked the question by now.

For the first time in her life, Morningpaw was a little scared of the forest. The moonleaf was very deep within; the beech trees were getting denser and the light scarce. It had occurred to Morningpaw that any second a rogue could appear and kill them – unlikely, but it could happen.

In front of them, Morningpaw could now see a dead bush, with a single leaf on top. She had been here twice before, before Mossheart decided she better go by herself at the half-moon.

"Are you ready?" Mossheart asked, pausing beside the moonleaf.

Morningpaw nodded, butterflies in her stomach.

"I, Mossheart, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of a medicine cat, and with your help, she will serve her Clan for many moons." Mossheart said, her eyes closed. "Morningpaw, do you promise to uphold the ways of a medicine cat?"

"Yes," Morningpaw whispered.

"By the powers of StarClan I give you your true name as a medicine cat. Morningpaw, from now on you will be known as Morningfrost. StarClan admires your patience and welcomes you as a full medicine cat." Mossheart said. "How do you feel?"

"The same," Morningfrost replied.

Mossheart didn't say anything, but curled up next to the moonleaf and closed her eyes. Morningfrost did the same, wondering if StarClan would tell her the meaning of her dream.

A second later, Morningfrost opened her eyes. The surroundings seemed eerily familiar. She wasn't in StarClan – Morningfrost was back in her nightmare!

Dead grass crunched as Morningfrost padded into unknown territory. Once again, the fog was very thick, but when she strained her eyes Morningfrost could see. This time around her dream was silent, but she had a feeling not for long.

Sure enough, Morningfrost heard a pitiful moan, very close by. Morningfrost took a few more steps and saw a dark she-cat, injured. Her fur was blood-stained and her pelt bore many scratches.

"Hello?" Morningfrost whispered.

The she-cat raised her head quickly. "Who's there?" Her voice was dry.

"I'm – I'm a medicine cat, I can help." Morningfrost told the she-cat.

"Water," the she-cat moaned, closing her eyes.

"There doesn't seem to be any water here," Morningfrost said, mostly to herself.

This time the she-cat didn't answer. Morningfrost returned her gaze to it, and realized she had died. Guilt started to creep into her. Two cats. Morningfrost had watched two cats die in one day, and she hadn't done anything to help them.

Morningfrost sat down and closed her eyes, mourning for the dead. Did this cat go to StarClan? She looked and smelled like a loner, so probably not.

Morningfrost opened her eyes, and she was back at the moonleaf. Mossheart was still asleep, her tail twitching happily. Morningfrost supposed it must be great to talk with StarClan. She knew she shouldn't but Morningfrost nidged Mossheart softly. Morningfrost felt too scared to be alone.

"Morningfrost!" Hissed Mossheart, sitting up and opening her eyes. "Why did you -" Mossheart broke off, realizing how bad Morningfrost looked. "What happened?"

"I didn't go to StarClan," Morningfrost said.

"Where, then?"

"I woke up in a dead moor. There was a lot of fog and I watched a loner die." Morningfrost mewed, hoping the shortened version would still explain.

"Have you had any dreams like this before?" Mossheart asked.

"Yes," Morningfrost closed her eyes.

**A/N: So this was a little longer, but not by much. Morningfrost finally got her name! And is telling Mossheart about her dream! Yay! I can't wait until next chapter...**


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